| Description |
Emanuel de Witte (1617-1691/92) is generally considered the finest Dutch architectural painter of the seventeenth century. Scholars have focused almost exclusively on De Witte's paintings of church interiors; however, De Witte produced a number of exceptional market scenes that have gone relatively unnoticed in the art historical literature. Recent developments in methodological approaches, namely economic studies and those in material culture, enable De Witte's market paintings to be reexamined within a broader context than traditional Dutch art historical methods have allowed. Examining De Witte's market scenes from an economic perspective establishes a framework in which these paintings can then be considered within the larger material culture of Amsterdam. This process suggests that De Witte's market scenes served as commodities of exchange, as objects of material culture that De Witte produced both for clients and for an open market, in an attempt to supplement his regular production of paintings of church interiors. De Witte's market scenes represent but a small portion of a large number of depicted markets that carry numerous possible associations with other popular themes in Dutch painting. Still lifes and portraits serve as two examples of themes that maintain a conspicuous presence in De Witte's market scenes, and both continue to be explored by scholars within the broader cultural context of seventeenth-century Holland. |
